CHAPTER 1337 THE TERRITORY ENFEOFFING EMPEROR
Darren and Gatlin walked out of the secret room together.
Thick clouds hung in the sky, casting a shadow over the earth.
"What's going on?"
Darren felt something was amiss, but it was not the pressure from a chief god.
Gatlin gazed up at the dark sky. He did not speak, and he seemed indifferent.
Crack!
Thunder rumbled in the sky and cut through the clouds.
In the gap, large, golden words appeared.
"Territory Enfeoffing Emperor."
Darren's heart skipped a beat when he saw those words.
It was as if they kept getting larger and larger, threatening to engulf him with their magnitude.
"Are the words flying towards me?"
Darren panicked. He tried to escape but found that he could not move at all.
Swish!
He was drowned in the golden light.
"Huh?"
After a while, the light began to dim and disperse. Darren was shaking all over, and beads of sweat
appeared on his forehead.
"This... What the hell is going on?" Darren looked at Gatlin, his eyes wide.
"Congratulations, my patriarch! You have inherited the Chu Clan's homeland. You are now the real
patriarch of the Chu Clan," Gatlin said, his tone calm and even.
"Inherit...the homeland? What do you mean by saying I've inherited the homeland?" Darren asked,
confused.
"Well, to some extent, you have now become the master of the Chaotic Region."
"What do you mean? Does that mean that I have full control over the Chaotic Region?" Darren asked.
"No. It means that from now on, you will fight for the Chu Clan and attempt to win back our territory.
Only after you ascend to the throne of the Chaotic Region can you be relieved of your official duties,"
Gatlin said.
"My official duties? Please stop speaking in riddles! I need you to clear things up!" Darren's face
darkened. He felt like he had been fooled by Gatlin.
"Patriarch Darren, please don't get angry. Let me explain. The leader of every region should first inherit
the throne of the region before they become its ruler and controller. What you have just inherited is the
former throne of the Chu Clan.
Once you are enfeoffed, you will become the nominal leader of the Chaotic Region. You will have to
continuously expand your territory to ensure that you will keep the throne," Gatlin explained.
"Humph! Why didn't you tell me earlier? I have absolutely no interest in the enfeoffment at all. I do not
want to expand territory at all, either! I'm leaving!" Darren was irritated. Obviously, Gatlin had known
about this for a long time. The fact that he hid it from Darren disgusted Darren. He did not appreciate
people tricking him.
"Patriarch Darren, please give this some thought. Once a Territory Enfeoffing Emperor loses the throne,
he will be killed by laws!" Gatlin hurriedly stopped Darren.
Darren frowned.
"You!" Darren glared at Gatlin. He began to think that he did not have a choice in this matter. Did he
really have to expand the territory?
"Patriarch Darren, please don't be angry. I did everything for the sake of the Chu Clan," Gatlin said,
lowering his head.
"Oh, don't give me that. You know that I am only at the Star God Realm, so why did you bring me up to
the position of the patriarch? You're obviously just setting me up to fail! With my current strength, how
can I expand territory in the Chaotic Region? If I don't expand my territory, I will be killed by the laws.
On the other hand, if I do try to expand my territory, I will surely be killed by other stronger warriors. I'm
damned either way! Now, you mean to tell me that you didn't do that on purpose?
If you really wanted to revive the Chu Clan, you can wait for me to inherit the position after I've grown
strong enough. You framed me! Don't try to deny it!"
Darren roared angrily.
"Patriarch Darren, I assure you, that's not the case," Gatlin said, a bitter expression on his face. "The
Chaotic Region is now occupied by various powerful forces, save for a few dangerous areas that are
uninhabitable by anyone. However, if even those dangerous areas become occupied, the Chu Clan's
throne will be lost forever. That's why I've been so eager to let you inherit the position of the patriarch."
"I don't care much even if the Chu Clan does lose it. After all, the throne is useless. If you didn't happen
to meet me recently, the Chaotic Region would still be completely occupied, right? Things won't
change," Darren said coldly.
"Alas," Gatlin sighed. "I feared it would come to this. Patriarch Darren, if the throne of the Chu Clan is
lost, all of the Chu Clan's masters above the Superior God Realm will be killed by the laws..."
"What?!"
This meant that if Darren's parents were somewhere out there, still alive, they, too, would be killed by
the laws if he lost the throne.
Darren could no longer hold back his anger. He grabbed Gatlin's collar.
"Patriarch Darren, what happened has already happened. If you want to kill me, you may do so. I will
not stop you." Tears rolled down Gatlin's eyes.
Darren threw him on the ground. "You must be lying to me."
"I dare not lie to you, sir." Gatlin bowed down before Darren, his head touching Darren's toes.
"Humph! Don't think that I haven't seen the master of a region. Are you aware of the 'Hades
Prefecture'?" Darren asked.
Suddenly, he remembered Yama. Yama used to be the master of a prefecture, so he should have been
a Territory Enfeoffing Emperor as well. He had been expelled and thrown into an abyss, but he had not
been killed by the laws.
"The Hades Prefecture? Of course I know it. The Hades Prefecture is one of the ten prefectures. It has
the same status as a region." Gatlin nodded, enthused.
"Well, then you should know that the predecessor of the Hades Prefecture was controlled by Yama!"
"Yes, I know that. However, Yama was expelled a long time ago. Rumor has it that he has already been
killed by the Hades Emperor."
"No, you're wrong. I have seen Yama with my own eyes. He was at the bottom of an abyss, planning
his future revenge! He was expelled into the abyss, and his territory had already been occupied by the
Hades Prefecture. This means that he had lost his throne. If what you said is true, how could he still be
alive? Doesn't this mean you're lying to me?" Darren said, his voice full of emotion. He frowned at
Gatlin, waiting for his answer.
"What?! You've been to an abyss?" Gatlin asked in surprise.
"Don't change the topic," Darren said coldly.
"Be patient, Patriarch Darren. I will tell you the whole story," Gatlin said. "For every major region, those
who are truly powerful are working behind the scenes. Take Yama as an example. I am certain that
several great masters are supporting him. He himself was expelled, but the great masters behind him
must still be living in the former lands and occupying a certain territory, so his throne hasn't been lost at
all.
Now, take the Chu Clan as another example. Although every former patriarch appeared to be the
leader of the clan on their terms, there have been more than twenty deputy gods behind them,
controlling the region. The two cases are similar. However, the Chu Clan suffered both internal strife
and attacks from other clans after the ancestor of the Chu Clan died. All the great masters of the Chu
Clan who controlled the clan have fled. No one is left to protect the territory."
Darren slowly began to understand what Gatlin meant.
The history of each major region was not as simple as they appeared. Even Lord Starry Sword should
not be the strongest existence in the Starry Sword Region. There must be a few powerful masters
working on his behalf.
"Patriarch Darren, it's not as difficult as you think to expand territory. In order to maintain your throne for
a period of time, you only need to keep the land ten kilometers around you under your control. When
you become stronger in the future, you can expand the territory until you obtain the Chu Clan's original
land," Gatlin said.
Darren was silent.
"Patriarch Darren, I know you are angry with me because you feel that I duped you. I am deeply sorry,
and I am willing to kill myself to pay for my mistake."
With tears in his weary eyes, Gatlin raised his hand. He was about to strike himself with his palm.
"Stop!"
Darren gave a loud shout. He released a tremendous force to stop Gatlin.
"What's done is done. What good will killing yourself do? That's stupid!" owns this.
Darren was also very moved by what Gatlin did. The Chu Clan had already been destroyed for a long
time, but Gatlin went out of his way to find a way to revive it and restore it to its former glory. Such
loyalty was rare.
There was no reason for Darren to put the blame on him.